Wrestling at the 1908 Summer Olympics – Men's freestyle bantamweight

The freestyle bantamweight was one of five freestyle wrestling weight classes contested on the Wrestling at the 1908 Summer Olympics programme. Like all other wrestling events, it was open only to men. The bantamweight was the lightest class, allowing wrestlers of up to 54 kilograms (119 lb).[1] Each nation could enter up to 12 wrestlers.[2]

Men's bantamweight freestyle wrestling
at the Games of the IV Olympiad
VenueWhite City Stadium
DateJuly 20
Competitors13 from 3 nations
Medalists
1st place, gold medalist(s) George Mehnert  United States
2nd place, silver medalist(s) William Press  Great Britain
3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Aubert Côté  Canada
← 1904
1924 →

11 British athletes, 1 American, and 1 Canadian participated.

Competition format

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The event was a single-elimination tournament with a bronze medal match between the semifinal losers. The final and bronze medal match were best two-of-three, while all other rounds were a single bout. Bouts were 15 minutes, unless one wrestler lost by fall (two shoulders on the ground at the same time). Other than falls, decisions were made by the judges or, if they did not agree, the referee.

Wrestlers could "take hold how and where they please[d]" except that "hair, flesh, ears, private parts, or clothes may not be seized"; striking, scratching, twisting fingers, butting, and kicking were prohibited. Holds "obtained that the fear of breakage or dislocation of a limb shall induce a wrestler to give the fall" were outlawed, and particularly the double-nelson, hammerlock, strangle, half-strangle, scissors, hang, flying mare with palm uppermost, and the foot twist.[3]

Results

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Standings

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Place Wrestler Nation
1 George Mehnert   United States of America
2 William J. Press   Great Britain
3 Aubert Côté   Canada
4 Frederick Tomkins   Great Britain
5 Fred Davis   Great Britain
Burt Sansom   Great Britain
George Saunders   Great Britain
Harry Sprenger   Great Britain
9 John Cox   Great Britain
William Cox   Great Britain
Frederick Knight   Great Britain
Guy Schwan   Great Britain
Henry Witherall   Great Britain

Bracket

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First RoundQuarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
 
          
 
Fall (5:27)
 
 
  William Press (GBR)
 
Fall (8:48)
 
  Henry Witherall (GBR)
 
  William Press (GBR)
 
Fall (4:31)
 
  Bruce Sansom (GBR)
 
  Bruce Sansom (GBR)
 
Fall (0:55)
 
  George Schwan (GBR)
 
  William Press (GBR)
 
Fall (6:31)
 
  Frederick Tomkins (GBR)
 
  Frederick Tomkins (GBR)
 
Fall (4:57)
 
  William Cox (GBR)
 
  Frederick Tomkins (GBR)
 
Fall (4:22)
 
  George Saunders (GBR)
 
  George Saunders (GBR)
 
2–0 (falls 11:45/3:57)
 
  John Cox (GBR)
 
  William Press (GBR)  
 
Decision
 
  George Mehnert (USA)  
 
  Fred Davis (GBR)
 
Decision
 
  Frank Knight (GBR)
 
  Fred Davis (GBR)
 
 
  Aubert Côté (CAN)
 
 
Fall (6:40)
 
 
  Aubert Côté (CAN)
 
 
  George Mehnert (USA) Third place
 
 
Fall (4:01) 2–0 (falls 3:55/8:50)
 
 
  Harry Sprenger (GBR)   Aubert Côté (CAN)  
 
 
  George Mehnert (USA)   Frederick Tomkins (GBR)
 
 
 
 

References

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  1. ^ "Wrestling at the 1908 London Summer Games: Men's Bantamweight, Freestyle". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  2. ^ Official Report, p. 40.
  3. ^ Official Report, pp. 621–22.

Sources

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  • Cook, Theodore Andrea (1908). The Fourth Olympiad, Being the Official Report. London: British Olympic Association.
  • De Wael, Herman (2001). "Freestyle Wrestling 1908". Herman's Full Olympians. Retrieved 28 May 2006.